Sophie Hannah to write new Poirot novel

Fully-authorised new Poirot novel to be published worldwide in September 2014

At midnight on 3rd September 2013, Agatha Christie Limited announced that Sophie Hannah is writing a new Agatha Christie Poirot novel for publication in September 2014.

The novel will be a classic Poirot set in the 1920s.

This is the first time that the company and Agatha Christie’s family have given permission for a new story using Agatha Christie’s characters to be published. Mathew said “I am very proud that a writer as eminent as Sophie Hannah has been enthusiastic enough, and respectful enough of Agatha Christie’s reputation, to attempt the challenging task of writing new Hercule Poirot story.”

What makes this news so exciting is that Sophie is a huge fan of Agatha Christie. She became addicted at the age of 13 and has remained so ever since. (Her favourite title is Why didn’t they ask Evans?). As she says “I read and collected all her novels within a year, and have been a passionately - some might even say obsessively - devoted fan ever since. It was Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple who, between them, made me want to devote my working life to crime fiction, and it was Christie's brilliant plotting and deep understanding of the human psyche that shaped my identity as a crime writer. Therefore, it is almost impossible to put into words how honoured I am to have been entrusted with this amazing project - in fact, I still can't quite believe that this is really happening! I hope to create a puzzle that will confound and frustrate the incomparable Hercule Poirot for at least a good few chapters.”

Sophie has written eight psychological thrillers, which have been published in more than 20 countries and adapted for television. Last year, her novel Kind of Cruel was shortlisted for the Specsavers National Book Awards Crime Thriller of the Year. Her most recent novel The Carrier has had some great reviews including from The Guardian which said: 'The genius of Hannah's domestic thrillers - apart from the twistiest plots known to woman - is that she creates ordinary people whose psychological quirks make them as monstrous as any serial killer.' Sophie is also a poet, and has been shortlisted for the TS Eliot Prize. Her website is www.sophiehannah.com and you can follow her on Twitter at @sophiehannahcb1.

Fans will have the opportunity to meet Sophie and to ask questions of her in person at the Agatha Christie Festival in Torquay on Thursday 19th September, when she is in conversation with Mathew Prichard and John Curran at 4.30pm. We are not revealing any details of the story just yet but Sophie is sure to share plenty of insights about the writing process and her love of Christie.

As more information is released we will post it here

If you'd like to listen to Mathew and Sophie in conversation on this morning's BBC Radio 4's Today Programme please go to the BBC's website.

If you’d like to discuss this news (and take a guess at what the plot might be) please visit the forum.